Social Media: Men VS. Women

03May

Social Media: Men VS. Women

These days, it seems like everyone and their mother is on social media- but is that really the case? Do men use social media just as much as women do? And how do the two genders use the mediums differently? Studies over the years have actually found some differences in the use of social media between the two sexes; however, that is constantly changing.

Twitter

When it comes to Twitter, women seem to just barely dominate. Twitter can only hold up to 140 characters per post, so Tweets have to be short and sweet. A study done back in 2013 at Carnegie Melon, Stanford, and Georgia Tech, determined men are more likely to use shorter, crasser language. The study also concluded that women are more likely to make words longer (ex: yessss, omggggg, etc). The study showed that women on twitter are more likely to express their emotions than men, resulting in more exclamations and emoticons replacing actual words. Ultimately, men and women seem to use Twitter almost the same amount, but with slightly different styles. Whether this is actually true for all men and women is definitely up for debate.

Facebook

In 2015, the numbers showed that slightly more women use Facebook than men. Facebook is ideal for those who want to connect with other people, and share their life with others. A study in 2015 proved that women are more likely to engage in this “sharing” behavior, and reveal more about about their personal lives(as cliché as this may sound). Of those who use the internet, women are more than 10% more likely to connect with friends than men are. Women even have 55 % more posts on their walls than men do! Women also seem to post more about brands and promotions than men do.

Instagram

Of all the people who use the internet, 5% more women use Instagram than men. Why is this? According to this article, women are more open to expressing themselves, and care more about image; resulting in a more tactfully orginaized Instagram account. Women seem to be more concerned with the artistic quality of their pictures and hashtag usage, while men don’t seem to care as much. While this is apparent in many Instagram accounts, there are definitely plenty of males that care about the aesthetic of their Instagram account just as much as many women do; and conversely, there are definitely women who could care less what style their Instagram account is.

Snapchat

The primary demographic of Snapchat users are those of the millennial era, also known as Generation Y. Over this past year, millennial men and women have taken turns leading the percentage of those who use Snapchat; and as of late, women seem to be taking the driver’s seat. Some say those who religiously use Snapchat hope to give people a glimpse into their seemingly “glamourous” life (aka singing off key in the car on the way to class, upside down twerking…you get the idea). Women of this generation seem to be obsessed with how other people see their life, thanks largely to the way media idolizes today’s reality stars. Either way, most will admit that Snapchat is a pretty fun and entertaining way to waste time.

Pinterest

Since the early days of Pinterest, the site has been aimed primarily at women; and the same is true to this day. The site allows users to browse though seemingly endless content, and save or “pin” pages and images they’re inspired by, or that they can use as an aid later. As much as the site is aimed at women, its male usage is slowly growing. Due to this change, the site is adjusting in order to carry some male friendly features. More recently, Pinterest’s guided search system changed search results to reflect the user’s gender. While men are slowly using Pinterest more, women still dominate (it is the home base for all wedding planning inspiration, for goodness sake…)

LinkedIn and Google +

LinkedIn is the one and only social media outlet that proves to have more male users. Over the years, men have consistently beat out women even if it’s by a small percentage. Men also use Google slightly more than women do. Why is this? It’s hard to say. Studies do show however, that men enjoy reading online discussion forums than women do. It seems like men like to look at content that focuses more on others, while women seem to like content that focuses on themselves. Again, this issue isn’t so black and white: not all men and women have the exact same habits online.

Although studies show men and women use social media differently a lot of the time, there is still a huge gray area when it comes to what’s “feminine” and “masculine” about the various outlets. The good news? Your social media accounts are yours; so you can do whatever you want with them! So go ahead: share that creepy spider video you found, and tweet the crazy thing you heard that woman say at Starbucks this morning. The internet is your oyster.